Winemaker Natacha Chave

Natacha CHAVE knew she would “make” wine like her parents. Before setting up she decided to take her baccalaureat then went on doing a master in Philosophy of the language. At the beginning of the year 2000 her brother Yann Chave took..

Natacha CHAVE knew she would “make” wine like her parents. Before setting up she decided to take her baccalaureat then went on doing a master in Philosophy of the language. At the beginning of the year 2000 her brother Yann Chave took over his father’s domaine (Bernard Chave), a renowned vineyard created in 1970 on the Crozes-Hermitage and Hermitage appellations. Natacha got it. She enrolled at the Suze la Rousse wine university in 2003, then passed a “Farming Professional Capacity (CPA) then did her work experience at various winegrowers to complete her initiation. In 2004, she bought 1.5ha of vines on a Saint Joseph appellation at Tournon-sur-Rhône. Then in 2007, she bought 40 years old vines on a Crozes-Hermitage appellation in the Chassis plain (Beaumont-Monteux village) and planted a few vines reaching 5ha extending her domaine to 6.5ha. The name of the domaine is Aléofane, in reference with the imaginary island of John Macmillan Brown. According to Natacha Chave: « In Aléofane city state, fermented drinks such as wine are considered rare, evil but with healing power : wine is a medical prescription». It is obvious that it cannot be the case with us !

Our immediate will is the respect of nature, soils, grapes and is to be as little as interventionist as possible both in grape growing and in winemaking process : grass covering between rows, total work of the soil according to the years to induce or not competition with the vine. Natacha Chave also uses biodynamic preparations that favour the stimulation of the plant natural immunity and its balance. Natacha Chave is into an approach that requires a lot of work. And she goes on with vinification : indigenous yeasts, no enzyme. No filtration, no fining and few sulphites. She worked heartedly and quickly met a public. A domaine and natural wines to follow absolutely. With such a name there can be no disappointment !